Seagram May Squeeze Time Warner in Court: Seagram Co. may challenge Time Warner Inc.'s anti-takeover defenses in court but isn't likely to make a hostile bid soon for all of the New York-based media giant, investment bankers and analysts close to Seagram said. Chairman Edgar Bronfman and President Edgar Bronfman Jr. are interested in seats on Time Warner's board and want to pressure Time Warner into consenting, bankers said. The Bronfman family would also like the option to raise its 13.

Warner Music Group Corp. doubled the salary of its top U.S. music executive, Lyor Cohen. The head of recorded music operations in North America, Cohen has a new five-year contract that includes a $3-million annual salary and a target bonus of $2.5 million, according to a regulatory filing. His compensation exceeds that of Chief Executive Edgar Bronfman, who was granted $1 million in pay and a $3-million target bonus.

Babyface, Mary J. Blige, TLC, Cher, Cyndi Lauper, Dolly Parton and Nancy Sinatra will perform at today's Commitment to Life IX benefit at the Universal Amphitheatre. This year's honorees include Neil Diamond, MCA's Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Mattel's Jill Barad. All proceeds from the event will benefit AIDS Project Los Angeles. Tickets for $250, $500 and $1,000, as well as special benefit packages are available through Levy Pazanti and Associates, (310) 201-5033.

Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group Corp. gained market share in the U.S. last year as their newly formed rival Sony BMG Entertainment lost ground. Universal Music, owned by Vivendi Universal, strengthened its No. 1 position with 31.7% of total albums sold last year, compared with 29.6% in 2004, Nielsen SoundScan said. Sony BMG, a joint venture of Sony Corp. and Bertelsmann, fell to 25.1% from 28.5%. Warner Music, run by Edgar Bronfman Jr., increased its share to 15% from 14.7%.

Edgar Bronfman Jr., who sold Seagram Co. to Vivendi for $34 billion in 2000, sued the French company in federal court in New York, claiming that it owed him a bigger pension. Bronfman, chief executive of Warner Music Group Corp., says that Vivendi is crediting him for only 20 years of service, ignoring 15 additional years to which he is entitled. An attorney for Bronfman declined to say how much his client claimed he was owed.

Warner Music Group said its net loss narrowed in the 10 months ended Sept. 30 after the record company reduced jobs and expenses. The loss was $136 million compared with a net loss of $239 million in the year-earlier period, New York-based Warner Music said. Revenue gained 2% to $2.5 billion. Time Warner Inc. sold Warner Music this year to a group of investors including Thomas H. Lee Partners, Bain Capital and Edgar Bronfman Jr. for $2.6 billion.